On August 20, Maciej Skorza director held a press conference online and expressed his enthusiasm for the upcoming Meiji Yasuda J1 League Section 27 Kashiwa Reysol game to be held on Friday, August 22 at Sankyo Frontea Kashiwa Stadium.

(I think we are on the upswing with three official wins in a row, but the league as a whole is in a fierce Pos competition with four points separating Reds from first to seventh place, despite the fact that we are approaching the end of the season with only 12 Trial remaining. Maciej What does the coach think of the current situation?)
I see it as a very unique situation. I think it is unusual to have so many teams with such a small difference in points at this stage of the season. I would say that it is highly competitive and the strength of the teams is very close. For these seven teams, 1 Trial 1 Trial will be very important, and I think the mental aspect will become more important with every Trial played."

(Maciej How many points does the director think the winning line is?)
It's hard to answer because we don't think in terms of a winning line, but the way we approach the game now is to always focus only on the next step, which is to fight only for the next Trial. I talk to the players about that and try to spread it in the locker room that we should always think only about the next Trial. No matter how hard or how long the rest of the road is, we always focus on the next Trial and prepare for it.

(As well as the next game against Kashiwa, there are 5 Trial direct matches left against top-ranked teams out of the remaining 12 Trial. Kyoto Sanga F.C.) "We have only one game left, but we still have to play against other top-ranked teams. What do you think is important in each of the direct matchups with the top ranked teams and what is important in the matchups with the teams that are not ranked so high?)
The matchups with the higher ranked teams are so-called 6-point games, which could be considered as 6 at stake instead of just 3 points. Two of them are away games. The first is against Hiroshima and the second is against Kashiwa. The other matchups against the top seven are home games. This Friday against Kashiwa will be a key game for us this season. The players are smart and understand the situation, so I don't think I need to do anything special to motivate them. I would like to remind the players why we were able to win this 3 Trial. First of all, we won because of hard work and because we ran and fought Trial and I hope they will remember that basic point. I am very happy to see that our performance is getting better with every game we play at this stage of the season."

(A tight schedule awaits the 5 Trial from the Kashiwa game. Ryoma Watanabe The players showed up at an open training session on the 18th, but I am also concerned about the condition of the Hiiro Komori players. How do you see their condition?)
'There are some medical issues. We are preparing now with the hope that either Ryoma or Komori will be ready in time for the Kashiwa match.

(Many people witnessed the open training Maciej on the 18th where the director and Satoshi Horinouchi sports director were talking. There are the Emperor's Cup and YBC Lewan Cup among the 5 Trial just mentioned, and I know you want to win them all, but is there some priority Pos?)
I was talking with Mr. Horinouchi during training the other day, but we also talk a lot outside of that. We also talk about strategies for this season. As you said, we are Urawa Reds and we want to win every Trial we can. And we want to win every possible title. We will fight for that. We have 2 Trial games against Kawasaki (Frontale), home and away, in the Lewan Cup. I think we can be brave and use players who often start from the bench in that situation and give those players a chance.

(I hope Komori and Watanabe will return to the team early, but if Taishi Matsumoto players start at the top, there is a problem that if Samuel Gustafson and Kaito Yasui players and Matsumoto are in the starting lineup, there will be no one on the bench who is a volante in his own right. How do you plan to compensate in such a case?)
There are several options. For example, (Hayakawa) Shunpei can play in that position. However, we have an important Trial coming up, so I don't want to share too much about such measures and plans. I am very sorry, but I cannot give you a definite answer."

(On the other hand Kai Shibato I think the player's condition is improving, but he said he is not at the point where he is 100 percent ready to push up. What kind of place is he looking at in getting on the competition table?)
'We're seeing Umi getting better every week, so he's as close as he can get to where he can do it at the J1 level.'

(Thiago Santana Regarding the players' defense, I think they are well positioned to protect the block and close the middle, but as for the switch to get the ball, they are too protective of their position, and in the second half there are situations where the players around them want to go high press, but Thiago can't go and press. How do you recognize this phenomenon? How do you recognize this phenomenon?)
All attacking players are required to have the ability to press high. I think Thiago still has room for improvement in this area. However, we have already made improvements in some areas, and he is working hard to implement them. I think that kind of pressing must be stable for 90 minutes as a team. For example, if Thiago starts against Kashiwa, I think we have to press not only in the first 5 or 10 minutes, but also after 35 minutes. I think the key word in Thiago's performance is stability."

(The last time we played Kashiwa was early in the season, and I think it was a difficult time for the team as well, with back-to-back losses against Shonan. How do you feel the team is different now from that period?)
If you look at the team members from the last time we played, there are players like (Maeda) Naoki who have moved to other clubs, and I think the team has changed a lot. Against Kashiwa, Hiro Ishihara (Hironori) and Samuel started on the bench while they were competing for the starting lineup. Now, they are playing as mainstays of the team. So, if you compare the last game against Kashiwa and the Reds of today, I think things have changed quite a bit.

(In terms of the hard work you mentioned earlier, didn't Kashiwa's previous game against Fagiano Okayama Trial give you courage?)
'I had a nice surprise when I saw Okayama. In the first half, they pressed very effectively, but at the same time, it is a very physical way of fighting. Considering our preparation for the Kashiwa game, the first half against Okayama was a great inspiration. However, Kashiwa is a team that is good at building up to begin with, and I think they are practicing how to evade the press based on the experience of the Okayama game. Trial We are preparing for various scenarios.

(I don't think you can give us a detailed plan, but how Trial do you want to carry out and win?)
'I think we have to improve our high press compared to when we play them at home. I think the high press was not our strong point in that Trial and they took advantage of our weakness and scored two goals in the first half. Compared to that Trial, this is the kind of comment I would make, but I want to concentrate on what the team is doing now, and I hope we can replicate what we did in the first half against Nagoya. As was the case against Yokohama FC away from home, I think we entered the game with a very high level of intensity. I think we have to press high, and if that is broken, we have to quickly bring the ball back and play a zone 1 defense. Kashiwa has a high quality build-up, so even if we try to stop them, there will inevitably be times when things go wrong. In that case, we must be able to defend well from a low position. However, if we continue to press with high intensity, I think there will be times when we will be able to use zone 3 to take possession and launch a short counter.

(After the Nagoya game, you said Komori "might be seriously injured," but is it correct to say that his injury was not that serious?)
) "This is a bit of a hard question to answer, but if I miss even 1 Trial it will be a long layoff for me. In the worst case scenario, it could have been 4 to 6 weeks (of absence), but I can say it wasn't that bad."

(Komori was a big contributor to the high intensity of the press, what do you think will be the key to missing him?)
(Komori was a big contributor to the high-intensity pressing, but what will be the point in missing him? The defense must start with the strikers. And I think it is important to react to mistakes made by high pressing. Kashiwa has a very flexible build-up, with the goalkeeper coming into the defensive line, the volante coming down the defensive line, and changing shapes. If you don't recognize that and go for the wrong press, the people around you have to react to that.

(Matheus Savio It will be an old game for the player, but I think Savio has been a big help to the team in the last few Trial. Do you have any sense if he has simply gotten better or if there are changes after the FIFA Club World Cup or if he is stuck in a different role in the team?)
I feel that after the Club World Cup, not only Savio, but the whole team is playing with more confidence. That is very good for the team. As for Savio himself, we are changing some things in his performance and play. We have also asked him to play in a simpler way depending on the situation. We have also changed the playing area a little. I think the common language between Savio, Ryoma, Takuro (Kaneko), and Samuel is getting deeper, and they are understanding each other better. I think the goal against Nagoya was a very important moment for him. He had been waiting for it for a long time. He has been playing with a strong desire to score for a long time, and now that he has scored, I hope he will be able to play more calmly and work more closely with others in the future.

(The team has won 10 J1 League home games this year. Is there a reason why you are so strong in home games?)
Compared to last season's team, I think we are more consistent this season. Also, I think the balance between offense and defense was not so good last season. We created chances for our opponents quite easily. This season, I think we have become a better team. I also think that our offensive ability has improved. We have very aggressive players like Savio and Takuro. They are naturally aggressive, and at home, the team as a whole can play more aggressively, so that may be the reason.

(In our opinion, I think it has a positive effect on the mental aspect. It is difficult to play in a crowd as big as Saitama Stadium, and I think there are players who cannot turn the cheers into power. I think many of the players in the last few years can turn such cheering into power rather than pressure).
That's an interesting point of view. I think that is one point. Conversely, it also raises the question of why we can't have such Trial at away games. I think there are multiple factors, not just one cause. We have been discussing with players, staff, and even Mr. Horinouchi as to why we have not been able to achieve a lot of success away from home. However, with the recent away 2 Trial wins, I think the trend is changing. Next, we have an important away game against Kashiwa. Kashiwa has only two losses at home, and they are the team with the fewest losses in the J1 League. We are playing Kashiwa, a team with few defeats, and I think our chances of victory are greater compared to our last matchup.

(I would like to ask about Friday's J-League and Urawa Reds and Friday's J-League and Maciej coach, do you know the history of Friday's J-League and Urawa Reds?)
'I'm sorry, I don't know.'

(In 2019 we fought 7 Trial on Friday and didn't win once)
How about this season?"

(Not this season, but Maciej we haven't lost a single Friday J-League game since the coach took over. Sometimes we don't win away games, but the 1-1 draw against Cerezo Osaka and the 1-0 win against Hiroshima were on Fridays Trial)
That bodes well."

("We often fight on Fridays with Kashiwa Reysol, and not only when I was Maciej manager, but also when I was Ricardo Rodriguez manager, we played on Fridays and sometimes won 5-1. It was Matheus Savio who scored the goal at Kashiwa on that occasion.)
'Lots of good information for me. Thank you very much. The moment the referee blew the whistle for kickoff, I forgot whether it was Friday or Saturday."

(Maciej Director played Kashiwa twice on Fridays two years ago, both away and at home on Fridays, and won both games)
'Your research skills are excellent. So far, Friday seems to have been my lucky day and I hope it continues."

[Urawa Reds Official Media (URD:OM)]